Books of Iron
by Where'sTheFood
Summary: "You make me thank god for every mistake I ever made, Because each one led me down the path that brought me to you" (Pablo Neruda). Set of one-shots, requests, gifts for friends about Gajeel and Levy's love. Rated M just to be safe.
1. Sun

**This is a small birthday gift for lovely ranunculus-fox in tumblr :) sorry it came out late haha Hope you had a wonderful day!**

 **Based on a post I saw in Tumblr.**

 **High school AU! Gajevy**

 **Word count:** 600 words

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He was always looking at her.

Gajeel couldn't help it even if he tried. The way she smiled, the way she talked, even the way she concentrated in the lecture, everything about her was so captivating. It was no surprise that since she decided to sit next to him in class, Gajeel's notes dropped significantly. He was embarrassed about it, but it turned out to be the perfect excuse to spend more time with the blue haired girl with the charming smile as she offered to be his tutor.

The more he got to know Levy McGarden, the more bewitched he was by her until he couldn't look away from her anymore.

But that was the only thing he did. Look.

He looked at her as if she were the sun basking him in her warmth and light. But he also looked at her as if she were the moon, awing him with her brains, beauty and kindness.

"Gajeel-kun should ask Levy-chan out on a date and stop looking at her like a creep." Even when Juvia was right, on the creep part, there was a problem.

Levy was just too perfect, and kind and sweet. And he was just a brute.

So he limited himself to look at her and be frustrated by the fact that his heart would do a somersault whenever she giggled.

But on those rare occasions when she was sad and her eyes didn't shine as they normally did, he would build up the courage to talk to her, dropping a joke or teasing her until she was smiling in that adorable way that was trademark Levy's.

Then, the unexpected happened when she told him she liked him. And even if she might had say it in a friendly way ("it's nice to hang out with you"), Gajeel couldn't control the butterflies that fluttered in his stomach nor the blush that made his cheeks and ears burn like live coal.

So, he did the only thing he was good at. He ran from her and kept his distance for a couple of days.

But he still looked her way. And he noticed she started looking back at him.

 _Maybe Juvia ain't so wrong_.

He wondered what could have happened if he hadn't looked her way. He wouldn't be making a fool of himself by constantly thinking about the petite girl. He would just be Black Steel Gajeel, the toughest guy in school who fears nothing and no one, and not Gajeel Redfox, a lovesick fool who cowers from a five-foot-tall fairy.

But if he hadn't looked her way his life wouldn't be as bright and exciting as it was right now. He wouldn't feel his heartbeat racing whenever he neared the school boundaries if he knew she wouldn't be in the classroom reading a book or talking with bunny girl. And he wouldn't feel adrenaline pumping through his veins if he didn't notice how her smile was a little bit broader whenever she looked back at him.

And as he looked her way today, while all of her friends congratulated her and hugged her for her birthday, he wondered if today he might be brave enough to not just look at her. He wondered if he might venture to stand in front of her and give her the small book he wrapped in colorful paper the night before. He wondered if he'll be able to swallow his fear of rejection and ask her out to that cool pizza place across the street.

As the bell rang marking the end of the school day, Gajeel took a deep breath in, grabbed the gift from his backpack and walked towards her.

"Happy Birthday, Shrimp."

* * *

 **Thank you for reading! Hope you liked it! I thought of this because ranunculus-fox reminds me of the sun whenever I chat with her or see her art and fics :) Leave a review please!**

 **WTF (Where's The Food?)**


	2. To the beat of my song

**Hello everyone! Happy belated birthday to nocturna131 ! This is my gift for you :) hope you like it! Special thanks to ranunculus-fox for being my beta :D**

 **Pairing:** Gajevy

 **Word count:** 1.7k

 **Rating** : T

 **A/N:** Please hear _93 million miles_ by Jason Mraz. You'll enjoy this fic more if you hear the song first.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own either Fairy Tail's characters nor the song 93 million miles

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Every Wednesday afternoon, Gajeel would take his guitar case and walk down the street to his favorite spot in Magnolia's Central Park. He would meet up there with Lily and Juvia who would be setting up Lily's drums and their seats for their weekly street performance. The impromptu street band came to life after one drunk evening where they performed in front of a couple of friends and all of them agreed that they could make some money out of performing in the street from time to time.

They had been doing this for the past 2 months and had already gained a regular audience that would wait patiently for their performance every Wednesday at 6 o'clock.

Though this evening, he noticed one of their regular spectators, a blonde tall woman, was accompanied by a smaller girl wearing a gray sports jacket and blue leggings that hugged her slender legs perfectly.

Even though the hoodie hided her hair from view, her heart-shaped face and her milky white skin had Gajeel wondering if he had ever seen someone as pretty as her.

When he locked eyes with her, Gajeel felt his throat go dry as her beautiful hazel eyes seemed to be looking directly into his soul. He had never seen someone's gaze as intense as hers; he could distinctly see the curiosity behind her eyes and the kindness of her soul and for a moment he felt as if the rest of the world faded into nothingness and only she existed.

Lily cleared his throat loudly to snap his attention back to reality. Gajeel blushed when he noticed he had been staring at her for a couple of minutes and she just averted her eyes to the side with a pink tinge spread on her cheeks.

"It's showtime," Lily stated and smirked at Gajeel's flustered expression when he took his seat for the performance. He saw the blonde woman giggling at her friend too and a gentle smile graced his features at the mere thought that the petite woman had been as entranced by him as he had been with her.

Gajeel played his guitar with the familiar notes that he knew to heart. Determination filled his mind with the sole purpose of impressing the small enchantress as he signaled for his friends to start the performance.

 _93 million miles from the sun_

 _People get ready, get ready_

 _'Cause here it comes it's a light_

 _A beautiful light_

 _Over the horizon into your eyes_

Juvia's voice carried the words with gentleness and joy that caught more attention from the passersby as a crowd started to gather around the street performers. Lily tapped his drums lightly, following the soft tune of the beginning of the song. Gajeel spared a glance at the petite woman and noticed how she closed her eyes enjoying the soothing melody.

He saw her friend nudged her forward and she blushed when she whispered something back at the blonde who was most likely telling her to stand closer to the front of the crowd.

Oh, now was game on! Gajeel closed his eyes and shifted his guitar on his legs in that sexy pose Metalicana taught him years ago. He knew this move to be quite effective when trying to impress a girl and he had never been so eager to put it to the test like right now.

With a cocky smirk, he kept playing the notes on his guitar holding his eyes close for dramatic effect. When he heard a sharp inhale of air, he took note to thank his father later that night for helping him win the petite woman's heart.

 _Just know that wherever you go_

 _You can always come home_

"Is that-?"

"It can't be!"

"But it is!"

Gajeel's eyes snapped open when he heard more surprised gasps and murmurs cursing through the crowd. To his shock, the petite woman stood now in the unoccupied space between the performers and the crowd. Her gray jacket laid forgotten within the care of her friend, revealing her slender figure framed by a simple black tank top. Wavy sky blue locks framed her face and cascaded down her back with only a white headband holding the rebellious hair in place.

She was even more beautiful than Gajeel had expected.

The group kept playing their song as she turned around to face the crowd.

 _240 thousand miles from the moon_

 _You've come a long way to belong here_

As Juvia sang the second verse of the song, Gajeel's eyes widened in surprise as the small woman started to dance.

And by God, was she the most graceful dancer he had ever seen.

The way she moved her whole body with such gentleness and precision, as if every movement was previously calculated and perfectly executed to be as flawless as it could ever be. Every twirl, every step, every anything she did was amazing. She was a blue haired fairy dancing to his music and he was the luckiest man on Earth watching her dance from up close.

"It's Levy McGarden!"

"It's that famous ballerina from the dance company!"

The crowd cheered and gasped with every twirl she did, picking up her momentum to the beat of the song. Gajeel was so lucky he knew this song by heart, otherwise his guitar strings would have stilled when she split jumped into the air. His breath hitched when she landed perfectly.

"Go, Levy!" the blonde woman shouted in excitement as more people gathered around the music band and the small dancer.

Gajeel smiled fondly when he saw the pure bliss on Levy's face. She was so lost to her dance and to the music, and in that moment she was the perfect image of happiness.

She stole Gajeel's breath away.

Juvia and Lily got more engrossed into the performance with the petite dancer getting more attention from the passersby. Juvia's voice brightened up and carried the lyrics with much more emotion than before. Lily poured his heart into the beat of his drums encouraging people to clap to his tempo.

Gajeel's eyes never left her, but he too stepped up his game and played his guitar like he had never had before.

Then, she took his breath away one more time.

 _Every road is a slippery slope_

 _There is always a hand that you can hold on to_

With the change of rhythm, her movements changed too. Gone were the delicate and precise moves as they were replaced for firm and strong steps. The pretty ballerina transformed into a fierce dancer. Each sway of her hips, each rise of her arms, each leap she took was intense and emphasized by either Lily's beat or Gajeel's chords.

She was amazing.

The crowd went crazy again at her new moves. Gajeel found himself laughing wholeheartedly at the mere scene that took place in front of him.

Everyone was smiling; their hearts and souls deeply invested into the music and into Levy's dance. He looked at his friends and noticed the most honest smiles on their faces as they kept performing; Juvia's eyes weren't haunted anymore by that bit of sadness that seemed to never go away and Lily's harsh expression had softened in a way Gajeel hadn't seen in a long time; it was as if the hardships of life hadn't taken its toll on them.

Gajeel felt himself being transported to a time when past nor future mattered, just the present. He wondered if everyone felt the same way in that moment, all because of the blue haired fairy who seemingly put a spell on everyone that lifted the weight from their shoulders.

Gajeel looked back at Levy as she took another leap into the air doing a perfect split. The sunset light framed her body with golden hues and Gajeel's heart did a backflip in his chest.

She was as radiant as the sun, basking everyone around her in joy.

 _93 million miles from the sun_

 _People get ready, get ready_

 _'Cause here it comes it's a light_

 _A beautiful light_

 _Over the horizon into our eyes_

As the song ended, the crowd cheered as loudly as they could. Levy bowed shyly at the audience, then turned around to face Gajeel and his friends. She clapped loudly at them and encouraged everyone in the crowd to cheer even louder at the music band.

She wasn't taking any credit for the amazing feature she just did. Instead, she was thanking them for playing _93 million miles_ and letting her dance to their tune. The ovation they received lasted for who knows how long and the three of them were smiling stupidly at being encouraged so warmly by the audience.

Then, Levy took out a couple of jewels and placed them gently into Gajeel's open guitar case. She looked at each musician in the eye and smiled sweetly before heading back to her blonde friend. The audience followed her example and they too placed a generous amount of jewels for the performance.

Gajeel followed Levy with his gaze, trying to come up with any idea to approach the petite girl to introduce himself and not look like a total creep in the process. That's when a white piece of cloth on the ground caught his attention.

He saw Levy's headband by his foot, which might have come loose during her dance. He grinned like a fool thinking it would be the perfect excuse to start a casual conversation with her. He quickly grabbed it and left his guitar with his friends before doing a beeline towards Levy.

He tapped her shoulder gently and gulped loudly when she turned around and her hazel eyes landed on him.

"Uhm… I think this is yers." He extended his hand holding out her headband to her. She looked at it then looked back at his face with that scrutinizing curiosity that froze him in place.

He felt sweat gathering in the back of his neck as she didn't say or do anything for a moment. Then, a mischievous glint in her eyes and a playful smile drew his eyebrows in confusion.

"How about an exchange?" Her voice was as sweet as he had imagined it to be.

"Huh?"

She rummaged her bag for something until she took out a small piece of paper that had some numbers scribbled on it.

"How about my number," she held the piece of paper higher, "in exchange for my headband… and your name?" Her smile was to kill for and Gajeel's heart was nearly bursting out of his ribcage at her proposition.

He never nodded faster in his entire life.

God, she was perfect.

* * *

 **Again, Happy bday nocturna! Hope you had a wonderful day and sorry for being so late with this haha.**

 **Everyone: Thank you so much for reading! I hope you liked it! If you did, please leave a review (even if it's all caps and unreadable, I love those reviews haha).**

 **If you also want to wish nocturna a happy belated birthday, please support her with commissions on her tumblr page!**

 **WTF (Where'sTheFood?)**


	3. A Fine Life

This fic was inspired by the amazing art of blueesparrow in tumblr! Happy birthday blue! I hope you had a wonderful day full of surprises and best wishes! Hope you enjoy this fic!

Quick reminder! Blue is offering art commissions! And I'm involve along with some other awesome writers with a special offering to write a drabble for an additional $1 with said commission. Go check the details out in blue's blog!

 **Title:** A Fine Life

 **Pairing:** Gajevy

 **Words count:** 5.5k

 **Rating** : T

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Seahorses are among those species that mate for life. Once one dies, the other will soon die too. They can't live without the other. That's why people say seahorses die from heartbreak.

Levy's life was something most people wanted for themselves. She had a beautiful apartment with a nice view to the oldest district in Magnolia; she had her dream job at the local library and was a part-time Literature teacher at a nearby high school; her social life wasn't bad either since she had some friends to hang out with every once in a while.

Levy's life was definitely fine, but she always felt like something was missing in it.

This feeling would come back from time to time, but Levy would just shrug it off and move on with her daily routine, which was exactly what she was about to do on this beautiful Saturday morning.

She sat by her coffee table with a cup of tea in one hand and her favorite book in the other one. The morning light filtered through the open window of the balcony as chatter and movement could be heard from the street below signaling the awakening of the city.

Time flew by as she got lost into the world of words and magical beings. Oh, how she wished her life to be as exciting and full of adventures as her books would tell; to live in a far land fighting for what it's right and falling in love with a brave warrior was something Levy's heart yearned for.

Love was by no means a foreign concept to Levy, but it had been so long since someone had made her heart skip a beat with a piercing gaze that she wondered if she would ever find someone for her, someone to walk hand in hand with her through life, someone to share a cup of tea on a Saturday morning.

 _Someone like him._

Her book remained open, but Levy stopped reading as her mind wandered to a time where her life felt as intriguing as an eternal mystery and as exciting as an eternal adventure. Her reminiscence took her back to the moment of her life where she felt complete, where commodities didn't mattered, where she didn't worried about what the future might hold.

Her mind took her back to the time where she was by _his_ side.

A loud noise from the street broke her reverie. As she came back to reality, she realized she spaced out more time than she should and it was getting late to do her customary errands.

She quickly threw on her white sundress with a matching headband and put on her grey sandals. With her red satchel secured over her shoulder, she locked the door to her apartment and headed out to the convenience store down the street.

As she walked by the edge of Magnolia's river, her pace slowed down to take a moment to enjoy the warmth and chill of the autumn afternoon. Children ran past her and Levy followed them with her gaze until they disappeared down the road. It reminded her of a time when she was younger and enjoyed running after the sunset trying to catch up to _his_ pace which always seemed almost impossible.

" _Wait for me!"_ she would complain.

" _Not my fault yer so short, gihi!"_ he would mock her, but he would always slow down on his sprint for her.

Levy shook her head in disbelief. Why was she thinking so much about him today? Truly, she could never get rid of those fond memories, but it was a rare occasion when she would be daydreaming so much about the past.

Twenty-two years back ( _"But who is counting?"_ she would say), life was bright and uncertain, and she believed herself to be capable of taking down any obstacle on her way. All because of him. He had made her big and strong and helped her build up her self-confidence. Without him, she wouldn't be where she was right now.

But she was dealt a bad hand in life. They had been played unfairly by circumstances, leaving her standing today alone by the riverbank thinking about the _what if_ and wondering where would she be if life had shown any mercy on them.

A heavy sigh escaped her lips.

"Twenty-two years and it still makes me feel this way, huh?" she mused with a sad smile gracing her lips.

Her reflection on the water looked back at her and for the first time in years Levy allowed herself to remember every single detail of him. She could see him in the water standing next to her reflection. His gentle smile, his unique laugh, his soft gaze reserved only for her to see. She could almost feel the warmth of his touch and the taste of his lips-

Levy stopped herself mid-memory when the reminder of what could have been squeezed her heart painfully. There was no use living in the past when nothing could be changed.

Finally, she resumed her walk to the grocery store and forced her mind to focus on what she needed to buy for the weekend once she entered the store.

As she carefully scanned the shelves on the third aisle to the left, the bell by the door rang chirpily signaling the entrance of a new customer. Levy didn't look away from her task at hand, but her eyes widened when said newcomer talked with the cashier.

"Oi, do ya sell cat food?"

It just couldn't be, could it? Her mind surely was playing tricks on her. But the voice was so similar. Even with the years gone by, she could definitely identify that voice anywhere she would go. The rough tone, his way of speaking, she could practically hear his tongue clicking in annoya-

"Sorry sir, we don't."

"Tch."

Her breath hitched and her motionless hand hovered over the shelf forgetting which item she was going to grab. Was this really happening? Maybe she fell into the river and all of this was a cruel dream ready to vanish as soon as she woke up on the sidewalk or in a hospital bed. Or maybe she died in her sleep and she went to the Afterlife. Or maybe-

"Fine. I'll just take a couple of those then."

She placed her hand over her chest trying, and failing, to steady her heartbeat. If she was indeed unconscious or dead, she wouldn't be feeling how her heart was trying to hammer its way out of her chest or how her breath quickened in sudden apprehension and excitement.

" _Twenty-two years, Levy,"_ she chided herself at her foolishness.

It was so dumb to look his way with the slim chance that it might be him after all these years. Besides, even if life had been generous with Levy on this day, what could she expect after so long of not seeing him? It was stupid enough that she had been daydreaming about him today, but to expect with little hope in her heart that he might be looking her way, in that same way her books described the protagonists' romantic encounter, was completely delusional.

Before she could come up with many more reasons on why this was bordering insanity, Levy's curiosity got the best of her. She moved down the aisle a couple of steps until the counter by the entrance door was on her sight line.

And there she saw _him_.

There was no mistaking him, even with his back turned to her. Any other person could think that the man by the counter and the one from her memories were two completely different individuals. But for Levy, it was as clear as day that this was the man that she had missed for so long.

His raven locks had grown longer and wilder with the years, but she could bet they were as soft as when she used to comb her fingers through his unruly hair. He was taller and his back was broader, showing that life had been good to him making him even more handsome than she had last seen him. But what really gave him away was his stance; the fierceness and cockiness that seeped into the air by just his mere presence in the room were something so unique about him, and Levy could clearly remember how these traits caught her attention back on that first day she saw him entering that long-forgotten classroom.

Then, he looked to his side fishing something out of his pocket and that's when Levy saw his ruby eyes deeply focused on finding the desired change to pay for his items. Oh, how she remembered those eyes when they used to look at her with so much love and tenderness under the starry night sky after they confessed their love for each other. His face had much more piercings now and she wanted to laugh wholeheartedly at how they fit him perfectly.

Her eyes welled up with happy and fearful tears. Her heart was being torn apart by so many conflicting emotions at that moment, in that same way it had been ripped down to pieces so many years ago. The _what if's_ from the earlier reverie came full force now that he was standing there by the counter of the convenience store she visited on a weekly basis. Had he been living close by this whole time? Had she been so unfortunate or distracted to see him on the streets she walked through day after day? And why was life being so cruel with her by shoving him right in her face to make her soul fly high up and come crashing down at the same moment?

" _Twenty-two years,"_ she reminded herself once again as she finally mustered the strength to tear her eyes away from him. When she turned around, Levy focused her gaze on the shelves in front of her, trying to calm down the raging emotions that made her feel that she might explode at any second. All because of him.

With her back turned to the counter and her eyes fixed on the type of cookies she should buy, she missed how his eyes widened when they landed on her.

Gajeel's hand stopped in his search for jewels in his pocket and his throat went dry at the mere sight of her. Because it couldn't be her, could it? But his mind reminded him that no one else had sky blue hair as bright and wild as hers. Most men would be fooled by her petite stature, but he could distinctly see her womanly curves that time had accentuated even more. Oh, he remembered how good it felt to touch her skin and kiss her lips. And nothing had ever compared to how heavenly it was to hear her laugh.

And by God, he had missed her so much.

As his eyes stayed trained on her, he saw her fidgeting slightly with the strap of her satchel. The way she shifted nervously from one foot to another didn't go unnoticed by him and he wanted to laugh stupidly at how cute it was that he could still read her so easily.

Her mere presence in the store brought some sense of calmness and warmth to his chest. His arms twitched as his instincts screamed at him to run up to her, to embrace her tightly against his chest and to bury his face into her blue locks as he would finally scream " _Yer here! I found you!_ "

His younger self would have mocked him for being a total sap, but time had showed Gajeel that reputation could go to hell. He had learned that there was no time to miss one-in-a-lifetime opportunities and his instincts were always right when one of these rare chances would appear in front of him. Sadly, he didn't knew this lesson twenty-two years ago.

He took a moment to notice how his heartbeat was racing a mile a minute and how his hands were sweating buckets. Nervous didn't do justice to describe how Gajeel felt at that moment. What would happen if he decided to follow his instincts and go talk to her? It had been so long since last he had seen her so maybe she wouldn't even remember him. Or maybe she saw him already and was intentionally avoiding looking his way, after all no one could take that long to decide which cookies they preferred.

Those last thoughts tugged at Gajeel's heart painfully. The mere fact that she was there had already made a mess of his emotions and thoughts, but thinking she might not want to see him, thinking that she might have forgotten all about him, about them, was too heartbreaking.

He knew he should be listening to his instincts but his feet remained rooted on his spot. Fear froze his whole body in the same way it had done it that unfaithful summer afternoon when he waved her goodbye.

He should man up and talk to her. He should let her know how happy he was to see her again. He should hug her and tell her how much he had missed her smile and warm spirit. He should-

"Sir?"

The clerk's voice snapped his attention away from the blue haired woman on the third aisle to the left. Gajeel's confused expression must have said miles about his wandering mind. With a gentle smile, the employee nodded with her head to the items placed on the counter, indicating that he was yet to pay for his purchase.

Gajeel remembered then what his hand was doing in his pocket and finally fished enough jewels to pay for a bottle of water and a pack of gum.

"Keep the change," he grunted absentmindedly. He looked back over his shoulder in search for the petite woman only to find that she had walked down to the next aisle away from him.

Again, Gajeel pondered on whether to go talk to her or not. He looked at the entrance of the store and back at her for a moment. There stood the woman he loved, the woman he had missed for so long, the woman that he promised to himself to never let go off again.

Then, Gajeel did something he hadn't done for twenty-two years. He ignored his instincts and walked out the store, trying his best to disregard how his heart clenched painfully with every step he took.

"Please come back soon!" The ring of the bell by the door and the clerk's cheerful farewell finally got Levy to turn around in time to see the entrance door closing behind the man she oh so wished would never leave again.

Small steps carried her to stand by the counter but her eyes remained fixed on the door. Her mind weighed her options on what to do as her throat tightened in an uncomfortable knot. Her heart was bursting with a raging need to run to him, cup his face in her hands and kiss him fiercely like her younger self used to do. But her rational self argued that it was foolish to expect the fire to still be there. He might not even recognize her now. Had he maybe seen her and just plain ignored her presence? Because who could blame him if he did? Who could blame him if he hated her with all his guts? It was all her fault. The day they parted, everything had been her fault.

A dejected sigh escaped her before she handed her items to the clerk of the store.

"I'll take these, Jenny. Thanks." She placed the jewels on the counter to pay for her groceries. All she wanted to do right now was to crawl back to her apartment as soon as she could. To that lonesome apartment.

"Is everything alright Levy?" Jenny questioned as she noticed the sadness behind Levy's eyes.

The blue haired woman tried to utter a simple _yeah_ but she felt as if she said anything she would break down crying in front of poor Jenny who had no need to see her as an emotional mess. Instead, Levy limited herself to smile a little bit in response.

She quickly grabbed her single grocery bag and exited the convenience store waving goodbye to Jenny.

She took two steps into the sidewalk before freezing on the spot. Her heartbeat sped up instantly and she tried her damn hardest to not look to her right.

Leaning against the wall next to the entrance of the store, Gajeel was downing the contents of his water bottle looking by the corner of his eye at the blue haired woman that stood rooted to her place. He tried to act it cool but his stomach churned in nervousness at not knowing what to do or say to her.

"Looks like it's gonna rain." If he could, Gajeel would have punched himself hard on the face for uttering the lamest ice-breaker he could have come up with. Why was it so hard to start a simple conversation with the woman he loved?

"It'll cl-clear out s-soon enough…" Levy tried to ease down the awkwardness between them, but her stuttering and her lame response had the opposite effect. Now, all she wanted was to run and hide from embarrassment.

Finally, both turned to the side to face each other. Their eyes connected shyly as if afraid of not knowing what to do or what to say. The embarrassment in each other's face was something they didn't expected at all.

And they laughed loudly.

That's when the tension between them was lifted. That's when they realized it was silly to be so fucking nervous about this encounter. It was them after all; they never chose the smoothest response or used the most charming pick-up line. Their romance had bloomed out of awkward conversations, shy glances and unmeasurable teasing.

As they recovered their breaths, they closed the distance between them until they were barely two steps away from each other.

"I barely recognized ya," he lied but he needed to save some face before he would combust out of embarrassment.

"Me either." She laughed lightly keeping her voice steady so he wouldn't notice her obvious lie. Levy took a moment to appreciate his appearance from up close.

Had he been sculpted out by God's hands himself? The white shirt left almost nothing to imagination as the fabric strained above his bulging muscles. His black jeans and studded combat boots complemented his casual yet sexy look amazingly well.

Levy blushed when she noticed she had been ogling him but Gajeel didn't say a thing about it, secretly enjoying that the petite woman seemed to take a liking to his physique.

"It's good t-to see you. Y-you look great!" She smiled sweetly at him trying to hide her embarrassment though her stuttering gave her away.

Either way, it was Gajeel's turn to blush at how cute she looked smiling so beautifully at him.

"T-thanks." He scratched the back of his head bashfully, looking to the side for a moment before looking back at her again. "And you look… Err… pfft…" It wasn't that Gajeel didn't took the same time to admire Levy's appearance but it was physically impossible for him to tell her how beautiful and radiant she looked. Instead, his throat only let unintelligent noises come out from his mouth while his hands gestured to her vaguely. At that moment, Gajeel wished for a lightning to strike him down and kill him instantly to save himself from the incredibly embarrassed situation he got himself into.

To his surprise, Levy giggled and her blush dusted her cheeks with a slight pink tinge.

"Thanks!" she said between giggles and he smiled warmly remembering her inhuman ability to understand his weird way of complimenting others.

"Wow, it's been a long time since last we see each other, right?" She bit down on her lower lip to stop herself from blurting out the exact number of years that had gone by since she said goodbye to him.

"Twenty-two years." His eyes widened when he noticed he had said that outloud and Levy was staring at him dumbfounded.

" _Did he just-? Does he really-?_ "

"I-I mean. It's been sorta twenty years, right?" His voice took on the high-pitched tone by the end of his sentence and he averted his eyes from her.

"R-right." She also looked to the side feeling a weird sense of happiness.

Because, _who's counting anyways?_ Apparently, both of them.

"So, uhm," she shifted nervously from one foot to another when their eyes connected once again, "what brings you to Magnolia?" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear shyly, looking up at Gajeel through her eyelashes.

For a moment, Gajeel remembered the day he met her, when she introduced herself and looked at him the same way she did right now; he remembered how his heart decided at that exact moment that this was the woman he would love for all eternity, and up to this day his heart never faltered in that decision.

" _God, does she have any idea on what she does to me?_ " His stomach fluttered with dozens of butterflies at how cute she was. He blushed again when he noticed she was still waiting for his answer.

"I-I'm on a tour…" he blurted out.

"Huh? A tour?" Her head tilted to the side and the fluttering in his stomach increased ten-fold.

"W-with my band! I'm on a music t-tour with m-my band!" He practically yelled at her from the embarrassment, catching the attention of some passersby. Gajeel just wanted to crawl into a hole and die in that instant.

"Oh! That's so cool!" She chirped happily and almost bounced up in excitement.

Gajeel's embarrassment dissipated at her joyful reaction.

"And you still look cute when flustered," she murmured behind her grocery bag but he heard her loud and clear. Gajeel's face turned tomato red and he could feel his ears burning intensely.

"S-shut up!" he yelled in a sort of threatening booming voice but it only added to Levy's amusement as her body shook with her loud laughter.

God, it had been ages since she had laughed like this. And it just came out naturally to do so with him. She remembered how much her younger self used to laugh everyday whenever he was around.

"Tch." He pretended to be annoyed by her laughing fit but it was endearing to hear that beautiful sound that seemed to drown out any other sound from the rest of the world. Whenever she laughed his world seemed to fade into nothingness until the only thing existing there was her.

"What about ya? Whatcha doing here, Shorty?"

Levy calmed down and wiped away a single joyful tear from her eye. Her eyes seemed distant as she pondered about his words. "Shorty…" she whispered quietly and Gajeel cocked an eyebrow questioningly.

Levy looked at him straight in the eye and a frown scrunched up her face while her cheeks puffed out in feigned annoyance. "Shorty…" she mused again as if getting used to the sound of that word.

Then, her frown turned into a kind smile and her eyes shone with nostalgia and joy.

"It's been awhile since last anyone called me by that nickname," she said.

It was Gajeel's turn to frown now as he crossed his arms over his broad chest.

"I was the only one that called you that." He couldn't understand why he suddenly felt so jealous that someone else might have used the teasing but endearing nickname he had given Levy so many years ago. It had been twenty-two fucking years. Of course she might have met someone else along the way! She was smart, beautiful, kind and so many wonderful things that it was a miracle that there wasn't a huge pile of guys throwing themselves at her feet right now. It was silly to feel like this, but Gajeel couldn't-

"Exactly." She smiled again and the conflicting emotions inside Gajeel's heart disappeared.

With a smirk on his face he asked again, "so, whatcha doing in Magnolia?"

"Oh! Right!" She laughed nervously at forgetting his original question focusing instead on the nickname. She cleared her throat lightly. "Well, I live here now."

"Do ya now?" He quirked a studded eyebrow and smirked at her genuinely surprised about this turn of events.

"Mhm!" She hummed happily. "I work at the local library down the street. And I'm part-time teacher at a high school too."

" _So what about ya Shorty? Whatcha want to do when ya grow up?_ " He remembered he asked her one winter afternoon after classes.

" _Simple really! And don't call me that! Working in a library would be my dream job! Oh! And maybe teaching Literature to kids? Yeah, that's what I want to do!"_ He smiled when he recalled her answer word by word and his chest swelled up with pride at knowing she had achieved her dreams.

"Seems like life has treated ya well." His voice was soothing enough to warm her whole body.

"I could say the same about you, mister rockstar." She teased him and equaled his smirk with one of her own.

"Gihi, damn right!"

They laughed lightly, feeling happy to see the other had fulfilled their life dreams. The smirks faded and turned into gentle smiles as they allowed themselves to get lost into each other's gaze.

It felt so right to be talking like this. People and cars rushed past them but they couldn't even care about anything else than the person in front of them. It was so easy to get lost into each other's eyes and to feel the quickening of their heartbeats with every breath they took. They weren't quite sure why life had brought them together today, but both knew this couldn't be just a coincidence, could it?

A truck's horn buzzed loudly on the street and their bubble full of peace and warmth popped. They averted their eyes to the side, feeling embarrassed to have been so engrossed in their thoughts and memories but also felt quite content to have fallen into that comfortable and familiar silence they both had missed so much.

"Uhm, well…" Levy's voice brought his attention back to her. She wanted to talk more with Gajeel. The only thing on her mind was that she yearned to learn more about his life, about what he had done for the past twenty-two years… about whether he had missed her all this time as much as she had or not.

" _Ask him out!"_ her heart screamed. " _'Let's go to the movies' or 'How about dinner's on me tonight?' ANYTHING Levy! Just don't let him go again!"_

"Yes?" he questioned while looking intently at her. His efforts in deciphering her emotional turmoil came empty handed.

" _Say something Levy! Please!"_ She swallowed thickly and licked her lips trying to form the words she wished she could say.

"It was nice seeing you, Gajeel." She extended her free hand to him and bit the inside of her cheek when she noticed the taken aback expression on Gajeel's face.

" _No! What are you doing Levy?! Don't let him go!_ " her mind and heart screamed but Levy turned a blind eye to their pleas.

"Yeah." He breathed out as he took hold of her hand. Levy's mind noticed how easily it was for his hand to swallow up her small hand. Amusingly enough, they seemed to fit perfectly like that.

Gajeel felt a strong tug in his heart. He didn't wanted to say goodbye. Not yet- NOT EVER! It had been so long since he felt like he belonged somewhere and he was sure that that place was by her side.

Before Gajeel could registered what he was doing, his hand pulled Levy towards him and his other arm wound up around her waist.

She was shocked at first when she collided with Gajeel's firm chest but soon enough she let herself melt into his embrace. Her free arm circled his midsection as her other hand tightened its hold on her grocery bag as if it were her lifeline to reality. Levy leaned into him until her ear was pressed against his torso. She closed her eyes enjoying the warmth of his body and the steady beat of his heart that seemed to calm down the emotional war that had raged on just moments ago in her heart.

Gajeel tightened his hold on her when she leaned willingly onto him. He buried his face into her sky blue locks letting her ink-and-paper scent waft through his senses and making everything else become irrelevant.

This is where they belonged, in each other's embrace, enjoying those little details about the other that sped up their heartbeats a mile a minute.

Everything around them disappeared to them. The convenience store, the street, even the sidewalk below their feet and the sky above their heads, everything was gone in the instant they let themselves enjoy the loving embrace.

The way they held each other reminded them of the many afternoons they hugged in the same way before the sunset or under the shade of their favorite tree. It reminded them about their first shared picnic in the park and about the many times he walked her home. It reminded them about happier times full of laughter and promises of eternal love.

A gentle breeze shook them out from their reverie. He loosened his hold on her and Levy leaned away from him slightly. With flushed cheeks, their eyes met one more time and in the other's eyes they saw the glint of raw emotions dancing like flames within their souls. They could see the purest love and a burning passion capable enough to melt any metal on the face of the Earth, but an intense fear was distinctly present in their eyes as well. Fear of rejection, fear of opening their hearts to be beaten to the ground by destiny's cruelty… fear of knowing what to say but not being able to say it.

" _Please, ask me to stay…_ " Levy wished Gajeel would say those two words in that moment, but it was incredibly selfish of her to ask for that.

When he averted his eyes to the side, Levy felt as if her whole world came crashing down. At that moment, she realized he wasn't going to say it, he wasn't going to ask her to stay and he wasn't going to stop her if she decided to go.

"Take care, Gajeel."

His eyes snapped back at her and widened in sudden shock. Everything felt like a deja vú. Even her forced smile and the dimming of the spark behind her eyes. It was exactly the same as twenty-two years ago.

He had played over and over again in his mind the words he should have said that time. He knew each letter, each sound that should have been uttered by his mouth that could have changed their fate. Now, as history seemed to repeat itself, he knew what to say.

" _Don't go. Stay with me, please._ " His mind repeated.

"Same. Take care, Shorty." His mouth betrayed him the same way it had so many years ago.

Not wanting to feel the heartache of watching her go a second time, he turned around first and started walking away feeling numb on the inside.

Levy stood rooted for a moment, trying to come up with anything to say to make him stay.

" _Just tell him! Just ask him to stay!"_ But as much as her heart pleaded, she knew she couldn't act selfishly. He had his life, an amazing and exciting life. What could she offer to him? She was at fault that their lives had taken separate ways; it had been her decision. How could she ask him to stay after she was the one who pushed him away twenty-two years ago?

With a final sigh and pain in her heart, she turned around and walked the opposite way from him.

Gajeel heard her light steps as the distance grew between them. He couldn't understand why he wasn't stopping her. Why did he just turned around and walked away?! Was he such a wuss to do the most daring thing he had had ever done in his life?

Many people considered Gajeel's life to be amazing. Even better, it was a life many people envied. Living as the lead guitarist of a famous rock band, traveling across the world on their multiple tours and enjoying his time with his teammates who were cool enough that Gajeel even dared to consider them as his friends, all of these were dreams come true that others couldn't even wrap their minds around them.

Yes, Gajeel's life was definitely fine, but he always felt like something was missing in it.

And as much as he had tried to shove that feeling to the back burner, today he knew what it was which his life was missing. Or better said, who… _Levy_.

He didn't notice when he had stopped walking away. He didn't notice when he turned around abruptly and opened his mouth to call for her. But he did noticed that she turned around at the same time and also opened her mouth to call for him.

"Wait!"

* * *

Thank you very much for reading! I hope you enjoy this! Again, don't forget to commission blue for her amazing art!

Random fact, I created a Spotify playlist for this fic. In case anyone wants to hear it you can PM me (though they are all Spanish songs)

If you enjoy this leave a review please :)

 **Where'sTheFood**


	4. Home

Hi everyone! Hope you enjoy this little piece I wrote for Gajeel's day! I totally didn't forget about Gajeel's day *nervous laugh*

 **Characters:** Gajeel Redfox, Pantherlily, Levy McGarden

 **Pairing** : Brotp Gajeel and Lily

 **Word count** : 1.3k (I'm getting better at keeping the stories short)

* * *

For a long time, Gajeel never felt like he belonged anywhere. After Metalicana up and left him, Gajeel truly believed there was something wrong with him that made him unable to fit anywhere he went. Unable to feel at home anywhere.

When he joined Phantom Lord, the feeling never left him. The barely legal guild was less home-like than the streets Gajeel haunted or the roofs where he perched on to hunt his next victims. So, when the fairies defeated Porla, Gajeel didn't feel as lost as when Metalicana left. Phantom Lord had been just a roof above his head that he could easily replace with a rundown garage full of scrap metal to munch on.

Fairy Tail had been different though. Even just being inside the guildhall, the atmosphere felt different. Warm. Welcoming. Even for someone like him who had done terrible things to the fairies. They were odd, Gajeel had decided, for letting him in so easily and even forgiving him for his past sins. Still, Gajeel didn't let his guard down. This was just another building. Another fleeting structure that could crumble to the ground as easily as the leaves at Fall. No need to feel at home when it was that fragile.

Lily changed that a bit. His rundown house suddenly became a bit more comfortable with him. Gajeel thought that it might be because of how similar the Exceed and the dragon slayer's lives were before meeting. There was blood on each other's hands, but they held a mutual respect about not prying into the other's past. He definitely liked sharing his house with Lily. It suddenly felt fuller somehow.

With time, Gajeel grew more comfortable at Fairy Tail too. He even chose to hang out at the guildhall instead of going to the mountains to train all by himself or with Lily. It might have had something to do with the fact that he felt a bit more connected with some fairies. With the likes of Levy and Wendy and Juvia. They were alright to hang around, he guessed. And others like Cana and Titania and even Salamander were not as bad either. Gajeel had started to feel at home in Fairy Tail. Something he had never felt ever since Metalicana disappeared.

When Fairy Tail disbanded, Gajeel was reminded of the cruel reality that buildings could crumble to the ground any second and that those you considered close to you could leave you behind in order to move on with their lives. Gajeel had been angry as hell when it happened. If it hadn't been for Lily and Levy who stayed with him for the following weeks, Gajeel was sure he would have turned back to his old habits and joined a dark guild or something.

He had just started to feel a bit at ease with Fairy Tail disbandment when Levy threw out the news during lunch.

She was joining the Magic Council. And she wanted them to go with her.

Gajeel didn't even care that he had split up his dinner table or almost ripped the door off its hinges when he stormed out of his house. He felt the strong need to go somewhere else. Anywhere else. Because she was leaving. Another friend leaving him behind not caring about him. And why would he follow her? They would probably never let someone like Gajeel join the Magic Council. And even if they did, it was just another place where he would never belong. Where he would never feel at home.

He sat by the rumbles that had been once the Fairy Tail guildhall. He lost track of time, too deep in his own thoughts for several hours. The sky darkened and the moon shone brightly as the dragon slayer stayed there trying to will the guildhall to return to his previous state. He tried to will it to be as loud as he had grown used for it to be. But the night stayed quiet as he finally allowed himself to mourn the loss of what had been his home since Metalicana.

Though Gajeel had been ignoring everything around him, he did notice when Lily sat down beside him in his small form and stared at the remains of the guildhall without uttering a word. They sat in a comfortable silence for a while, but Gajeel's mind was racing with a million thoughts on what to do now. And he knew if someone could help him sort out his ideas it was Lily.

"Oi, Lil'," Gajeel said but didn't turn to look at his partner. He glared at the debris when the bitter taste of the next words hit his tongue. "Are you going with the Shrimp?"

"That depends," Lily stated calmly with his eyes fixed in the same direction as the dragon slayer's.

"On what?"

"On whether you're coming with us or not."

A pause settled between them. A sudden calm washed over Gajeel at knowing his cat cared about him. Considered him for his decision. But he knew it was stupid of Lily to miss an opportunity like this one for Gajeel's own insecurities.

"Tch. If ya wanna go, just go cat. Wha'd'aya need me for?" His own words stung worse than the chill of the night.

"We're partners, Gajeel. Remember?" Lily's composed response soothed Gajeel's mind again. His cat was more loyal than anyone he had ever met.

Gajeel stopped glaring at the rumbles of the guildhall but he still didn't look Lily's way. "They'd never let me join the Council. They would arrest me first-"

"That's not what's stopping you, isn't it?" For the first time that night, Lily raised his voice to cut off Gajeel. The dragon slayer felt a growl rumble in his chest in annoyance.

Fucking cat knew him so well.

His glare returned to the remains of the guildhall and he tightened his fists in anger.

"Why move away? We have our place here. Or had…" Gajeel's sentence trailed off as his expression turned softer. Sadder even.

Lily chuckled quietly and shook his head. "Gajeel, do you feel at home?" He spared a glance at his partner by the corner of his eye.

"Huh?" Gajeel's eyebrows furrowed in confusion at his friend's question.

"It's really a subjective term, don't you think?" The Exceed looked up to the bright moon as he continued, "Levy has told me she believes home to be where her friends and family are. I think home is where I can be useful to others with the things I do." Lily looked at Gajeel and waited for the dragon slayer to meet his gaze. "Home is not a building, Gajeel. And it's not a guildhall or the cave where you grew up in. But its definition is entirely up to you." He winked at his partner as he let his last sentence echoed through the lonely night.

Gajeel closed his eyes letting Lily's words sink in his heart. He looked back again at the debris of the guildhall and sighed as he felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He stood up and started walking towards his house.

"Let's go cat." He called over his shoulder. His voice was stronger and more energetic than it had been in the last weeks.

Lily caught up to him easily, flying next to him before perching on Gajeel's shoulder. "May I ask, where to?"

"Tch. To pack up, idiot. Can't have you and the Shrimp leaving me behind, can I?" Gajeel smirked at Lily and he mimicked his expression.

For the longest time, Gajeel never felt like he belonged anywhere after Metalicana disappeared. But it was mainly because he had looked for a physical place, like a guildhall or a house. Now, he realized that neither Levy nor Lily's description of home worked for him. It was a combination of both. Gajeel felt at home in Fairy Tail because the people he cared about were there and because he felt useful protecting the guild from every crazy bastard that decided to declare war on Fairy Tail.

By joining the Council, he would use his abilities for the better and he would have friends he cared about, at least Lily and Levy, with him to enjoy his time there.

He was ready to make the Magic Council his new home.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you very much for reading! I felt awful for not having anything prepared for Gajeel's day and suddenly this popped up in my head. I'm still debating on whether to use this for my Magic Council multi-chapter story (which will happen... eventually... once I'm done with some other WIPs)

If you liked the story please leave a review :) I know I might not respond as quickly as I should but I reread your reviews several times and they encourage me to write more often! Also, by reviewing I get to see what you guys like and what you don't like so go ahead :) even if it's an all caps unreadable text I will love that!

Again, thanks for reading!

 **WTF (Where's The Food?)**


	5. Keep the cold outside

**Keep the cold outside**

Merry belated Christmas to capaleran2! I'm your secret santa from fairies-and-christmas exchange gifts in tumblr! (sorry for being late! XD) I hope you enjoy this fic that I wrote for you :) Honestly this was kinda tough for me to finish since I discovered I'm not very good at writing Christmas themed fics lol but I still had lots of fun and I hope you like it as much as I liked writing it for you!

Pairing: Gajevy

Rating: T – cuteness ahead

Word count: 2.7k

Ffnet

* * *

The cold bit at his skin mercilessly as he trudged through Magnolia's streets as fast as his feet could take him. Gajeel lifted his collar up to keep the bad weather at bay the best he could. If he hadn't taken so freaking long during that mission, he could have avoided the snow storm that fell over Magnolia on this December night. But even the blizzard couldn't keep the streets empty, since what looked like half of Magnolia seemed to busy themselves buying last minute Christmas presents.

Even when most people parted as they saw his brooding figure trekking down the street, Gajeel growled once or twice whenever a distracted citizen would come too close to the dragon slayer, earning him a surprise yelp and a hurried apology before the person would disappear amongst the crowd.

"Fucking holidays," he mumbled behind his thick scarf as he adjusted his duffle bag over his shoulder to continue his walk. It's not like he hated Christmas or anything like that, it was quite the opposite, but did it have to snow this heavily on this time of the year?! All he wanted now was to get home and sit by the fire to forget about this unforgiving cold. More than anything, he just wanted to hold his girlfriend tightly and cuddle with her under their thick blankets, forgetting all about the three-week-long mission he had just finished.

If he was honest with himself, Gajeel had missed Levy more than he cared to admit during his mission. Her bell-like laugh, her warm smile and her gentle touch were everything he craved at the moment. Even when he couldn't put his feelings into words when he was with her, he was sure Levy knew how deeply he cared about her. They had been dating for six months now and every day she proved to be an expert in deciphering his way of showing his adoration for her.

A soft smile formed on his lips just thinking about Levy and about seeing her soon. Though, he mused, she wouldn't be home until tomorrow morning since the guild seemed to be on full on party mode for the upcoming holidays and she always enjoyed spending her time there instead at their home when Gajeel was out on a job. Besides, he had called her beforehand to tell her he wouldn't arrive until tomorrow morning so there was no reason for her to be home tonight.

He paused for a moment in his walk to reconsider going to the guild first instead to their home. Just the thought of seeing her and kissing her sent his heart racing. Dammit! If he had to wait another second to be with her he would definitely punch someone in the face.

Just when he was about to turn around to head to the guild, a foul smell reminded him that he hadn't showered at all during the mission. Sweat, dirt and dry blood stuck to him like a second skin. He was in dire need of a shower before he saw Levy to be at least somehow presentable to his girlfriend.

With a defeated sigh, he resumed his walking towards their home, picking up his speed to make the trek go faster. He planned to take a quick shower and head to the guild as fast as he could to see his woman and kiss her endlessly to show her how much he had missed her.

His thoughts drifted to the day he left for his mission. Levy had been eager to start decorating their home for Christmas, telling him all about the type of decorations they should buy and how they could hang some white lights from the ledge of the roof and place garlands around the supporting pillars at the entrance of their home. Gajeel chuckled at her enthusiasm and promised her that they would decorate as much as she wanted to as soon as he got back from the mission.

A sharp pang of guilt made his heart constrict. Something about picturing Levy sitting in a dull home without any decorations made him want to beat himself up all over again for taking so damn long to come back to her.

For a second time that night, Gajeel paused in his step to dwell a bit on this and frowned deeper the more he thought about it. Light from the store to his right caught his attention and he saw that he had luckily stopped next to a Christmas decorations shop. A brilliant idea formed in his mind pulling his lips into a smirk.

 _Let's buy some decorations now that I'm here_. _I'll set them up and surprise Lev in the morning._

With a determined look and a new goal in his mind, Gajeel entered the store to look for the perfect decorations that could woo his girlfriend and make up for the lost time.

* * *

With an annoyed grunt, Gajeel placed his duffel bag on the floor and fished his keys from his pocket to open the door to their home. A small plastic bag, which should be bigger if you asked him, was held tightly in his other gloved hand. Misfortune seemed to accompany the dragon slayer tonight as he had been just able to purchase one item from the decoration shop. According to the owner, everyone in town had been frantic buying last minute gifts and decorations and she had been left with just a few trinkets and not-so-pretty decorations to sell in her modest shop. Hence, Gajeel only managed to find one decent Christmas item after an hour search within the shop. He had no better luck at the next shop, or the one that followed that one. So, reluctantly, he headed back home with his small plastic bag securing the only decoration he managed to buy.

"I'm such an idiot. Should have bought stuff before the mission," he muttered angrily at himself. More than anything, Gajeel felt frustrated that he wouldn't be able to surprise Levy with a full Christmas themed house. He knew she deserved better than one lonely ornament and he would get to work later tonight to make some other decorations out of his own iron. Besides, he was still extremely skilled whenever it came to crafting anything out of iron.

As Gajeel pushed the door open still deeply immersed in his own thoughts, he missed the red and white 'Welcome' matt below his booted feet that wasn't there before he left for the mission, and the Christmas garland tightly secured around the pillars of the threshold that definitely hadn't been there three weeks ago. He even missed the chirping sound of two jingle bells that rattled harmoniously as he closed the door behind him.

No, Gajeel hadn't seen the decorations outside his door, nor the white lights that hung from the ledge of the roof. But as soon as he entered his not-so-dull and not-so-empty house, his eyes widened in surprise, his mouth opening with a silent question stuck in his throat.

 _W-WHAT?!_

His living room shone warmly in the dim light of the fireplace. Crystal snowflakes hung from thin strings glued to the ceiling, sparkling occasionally when they'd catch the light from the fire that blaze with life chasing away the cold from outside. The freshly cut logs cracked under the flames as they fueled the heart and basked the house with a home-welcoming atmosphere. Over the fireplace, three red and white stockings were nailed to the bricks. He noticed Levy's handwriting when he read the names on each one, his name being in the biggest stocking of the group.

As his eyes roamed through the room, he noticed the different decorations that gave their home the holiday spirit he had been looking for earlier in the shops. A Christmas tree with candy cane, Christmas lights and fake snow stood tall beside their couch; snowglobes with the guild mark took their places over their coffee table; a ´Merry Christmas´ banner hung behind the TV lacrima with shiny tinsel on either side of the banner.

Though not as heavily decorated as Santa's workshop (like Gajeel had in mind to surprise Levy), he couldn't stop the soft smile that grazed his lips. Warmth filled him at picturing Levy, and most likely Lily, setting everything up and decorating the house for Christmas in his absence. Oh, how he wished he could have been there to help them out, and, of course, tease Levy whenever she wouldn't be able to reach all the high places.

Noise from the kitchen let him know that he wasn't alone in the house. He chuckled softly as he turned on the lights of the living room and announced his arrival with his gruff voice.

"I'm home!"

Almost instantly, both Levy and Lily poked their heads from the threshold that connected the kitchen to the living room. Their bright smiles melted away the last trace of the cold from his body as Lily flew to greet him while Levy practically bounced happily behind the Exceed. Gajeel met them halfway with his long strides to stand right in the middle of the living room as he embraced his two favorite people in the whole world.

"Welcome home, Gajeel!" Levy looked up at him and smiled brightly in that way she had only reserved for him. Her cheerful smile distracted him for a moment from her flour-and-chocolate stained face that he couldn't help but laugh softly.

"What happened to both of ya?" He glanced at Lily who had as well flour stains on his paws and on top of his head, not to mention the chocolate smears on his wings.

"Well, Levy's surprise kinda exploded." Lily smirked as he hovered next to his partner, watching how the solid script mage turned beat red with embarrassment.

"Lily!" Levy squeaked and jumped back from the embrace. She held her hands in mock surrender waving them frantically. "Nothing happened! Haha," her forced laughter went quieter when she noticed Gajeel wasn't buying it.

"Shrimp, you have flour all over your face," he deadpanned, "and, is that butter on your chin?"

"I-I don't know w-what you're talking about, haha." She quickly moved to wipe away her face with her sleeves, only to smudge her face even more. She nervously glanced over her shoulder to the kitchen and Gajeel knew where to go next.

As he passed by her, Levy squeaked again and grabbed his arm trying to stop him from coming any closer to the kitchen. Even as she dug her heels into the hardwood floor, she did nothing to deter nor slow Gajeel from his goal.

"Gajeel, no! Don't go in there!" Levy's plead fell on deaf ears as Gajeel finally entered the kitchen, his face paling at the sight.

To say the kitchen was a mess would be an understatement. Flour, butter and chocolate smears were all over the counter next to the stove and on the floor; the trash bin was full of what looked like several batches of burnt cookies; dirty dishes piled up high in the sink with several pans ruined beyond repair by the mere look of them. When something dripped from the ceiling, Gajeel looked up to see a huge stain of cookie batter and two cracked eggs.

"Holy shit! What the hell happened?!" Gajeel turned to the other two, stunned beyond belief by the war zone that used to be their kitchen.

Lily just shook his head and sighed while Levy hid her burning face behind her hands.

"Levy wanted to make you some 'welcome home' cookies. We've been at it since this morning, but… well, you already saw how it went." Lily clapped his hands slowly, creating small puffs of flour to get rid of the stains before they clung to his fur permanently.

Gajeel's eyes looked down to Levy as she groaned and her eyes poked behind her hands to meet his crimson gaze. Slowly, she lowered her hands, her expression a mix of an embarrassed pout and a frustrated frown as she looked sideways not wanting to meet Gajeel's eyes anymore. She looked even cuter than usual in Gajeel's opinion.

"I never thought baking cookies could be this hard." Her lower lip poked out adding to her adorableness. Her hazel eyes turned to him when he remained quiet, noting the faint blush on his cheeks. "You said you'd arrive tomorrow morning so I was going to clean everything tonight… and buy some new pans and good cookies…" she muttered lowly the last part as she looked to the floor, suddenly finding her shoes to be very interesting.

Her eyes went back to him as his booming laughter filled the room. His unique laugh full of mirth vanquished any trace of embarrassment from her mind and she soon joined in the laughter. Wiping away tears of joy, Gajeel gazed at Levy one more time, saving a mental picture of her flour-and-chocolate stained face. With the pad of his fingers, he gently wiped away some chocolate from her cheek earning another fit of giggles from his girlfriend.

"Gihi. Tell ya what? Leave the cleaning to me." Levy looked up at him, surprise etched on her face at his offer.

"B-but you just came back from your mission! Aren't you tired-?" Gajeel silenced her with a soft kiss to the crown of her blue curls.

"It's the least I can do since ya two decorated the house while I was gone." His voice was full of warmth and adoration for the woman in front of him. Any further argument she might had have died in her throat as she looked into his soft smile and fond gaze. Levy smiled too and nodded in agreement, being completely done with dealing with anything related with cookies.

She giggled again before rising up to her tiptoes to place a quick kiss to his nose. "I'm glad you're home," she breathed as another type of blush tainted her cheeks.

"Gihi, me too." He gazed into her eyes and for a minute he forgot how to breathe for he could get lost in the intensity of her gaze and the emotions that swirled behind those hazel orbs that drowned the world around them. He brought her closer again in a tight embrace as he buried his nose in her wild hair, breathing in her unique scent mixed with cookie batter.

"Oh, what do you have in the bag, Gajeel?" Lily questioned as he just noticed the small plastic bag in Gajeel's hand. Gajeel finally remembered what he was supposed to do with his most recent purchase as Levy looked at the bag with eyes full of curiosity.

"Gihi, close yer eyes Shrimp." He grinned as he kept the bag high enough so her curious hands couldn't reach it.

With a cute pout and mock annoyance, Levy gave in as she closed her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine."

"And no peeking."

"I'm not- Hey!" Levy raised her voice as a pair of flour stained paws were placed over her closed lids. "Lily! Your paws are dirty!"

"That's your fault, not mine Levy," Lily snickered as Gajeel retrieved from within the plastic bag the small ornament he had bought.

"Lily!" Levy whined trying half-heartedly to bat Lily's paws off her eyes.

"Gihi, okay Shrimp, you can look now." Gajeel had to cover his mouth to stop the burst of laughter that bubbled up his throat when Lily removed his paws from her eyes. Levy's glare just added to his amusement as her beautiful eyes had a round flour-stain over her lids, all thanks to Lily.

Gajeel smirked and pointed upwards as Lily smiled approvingly. As Levy's gaze traveled up, her eyes widened in wonder at the mistletoe that hung on the threshold of the kitchen. The simple yet beautiful ornament seemed to be the missing piece to complete the Christmas decorations of their home.

"It's beautiful Gajeel!" Her smile threatened to blind him for life as he closed the small gap between them placing one hand on the dip of her waist and the other one on her cheek, stroking softly her pearly skin. His face came closer to hers until his lips ghosted over her plumped pink lips. He gazed into her half-lidded eyes and finally sealed his lips over hers in a tender and warm kiss, but not without first letting his soft voice dance around them.

"Merry Christmas, Levy."

* * *

 **A/N:** Thanks to everyone for reading this! Wasn't it cute? Lol the cookie accident came from my most recent experience at trying to bake some Christmas cookies lol.

 **Personal message to cap** : Dude, it was an honor to write something for you :) I admire your work so much and it was a personal challenge to write something of high quality for you. Thanks so much for being super awesome and cool and forgive me for my awkwardness when we talked the first time lol. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and that 2018 will be full of happiness and success for you and your loved ones! You deserve the best in this world!

From my tags in tumblr (so you won't miss my hilarious ramblings): #lol Gajeel still smelled bad; #but Levy didn't mind that much; #they all helped cleaning the kitchen; #which ensued in a cookie batter war with burnt cookies grenades; #then Gajeel cooked something for dinner; #much to Lily's relief; #he didn't want to hurt Levy's feelings but she knows nothing about cooking a decent meal; #Lily had been craving for Gajeel's cooking since the day he left for his mission; #cheers to you reader if you checked the tags xD

Reviews make me happy and the happier I am the more I write :)


	6. Caring

**A/N:** Happy bday Kelly! (kmmcm) You're a fantastic friend and an amazing artist! Hope you had such a wonderful day cuz you def deserve it! All the love and hugs your way my friend! This one-shot came out of nowhere but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless :)

 **Word count:** 2.5k

* * *

Gajeel's eyes missed to find her yet. Her team was back from the mission, and so should she. Jet and Droy were by the bar talking with Mira and Macao about how their mission was a total success, a pair of goofy proud smiles stretched over their faces as the conversation flowed. But Gajeel still couldn't see her anywhere around.

 _Where is she?_

He could smell her nearby, ink and flowers and her sweet sweat intoxicating his nose and making him feel dizzy, but as much as he glanced back and forth through the guildhall, there was still no signs of her. He trusted his nose, sometimes even more than his own eyes, so he decided to follow her scent. He slid off his table and walked aimlessly through the guildhall corridors, his nose guiding each one of his steps until he reached the infirmary.

 _Huh? Why would she be here?_

Worry creased his frown and he swallowed thickly before the barrage of thoughts invaded his mind, one question bubbling up his chest and perching on his tongue behind clenched teeth.

 _Is she hurt?_

He shook his head to stop the train of thoughts. Because for even all his paranoia and the multiple scenarios that his mind had created in an instant something was completely off about this: neither Jet nor Droy would be so joyful if something had happened to Levy on their mission. Gajeel knew this to heart. Those two cared about her much more than they cared about anything else. They wouldn't act as if nothing had happened if Levy was injured.

Gajeel shook his head one more time deciding to find out what she was doing here. Not waiting another second, he entered the room, closing the door behind him without much thought.

"Oi, Shrimp. Ya he-?" He froze as his eyes landed on her, or rather, on her smooth pearly skin. Any further words and thoughts vanished at the sight as he opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of the water, his throat becoming unimaginably dry.

She sat at the edge of one of the beds at the infirmary with her back facing him, her black bra being the only piece of clothing covering her top body. This was the most skin he had seen on Levy and it suddenly made him aware of his unmeasurable desire to run his tongue along every inch of her skin, tasting her and covering her in soft kisses and prays of sweet words. Gajeel couldn't pinpoint at what was getting such a reaction from him. Heck, he had seen much more skin from every other girl in the guild. But not her. And it was incredibly hard for Gajeel to look away now.

At the sound of the door opening and closing Levy looked over her shoulder and her eyes widened when they landed on Gajeel. She looked down at her for a quick instance, remembering she had pull off her shirt and was clad only on her bra and leggings. As she looked back at him, Levy couldn't contain the loud screech that passed her lips nor how her blush exploded from her neck to the roots of her bright blue hair.

"Kyaaa! Don't you know how to knock?!" Her voice turned to a higher pitch as she faced away from him bringing her arms over her chest to try to cover herself as much as possible. Dear Mavis! She could die from embarrassment in that instant! Of all the people that could have come in, it just had to be Gajeel!

 _Stupid! Why didn't I lock the door?!_

The dragonslayer felt heat exploding on his face and he suddenly became aware that he was blatantly staring at Levy's exposed back. For all he bragged about his strength, Gajeel found it incredibly hard to look away. There was no willpower strong enough to force him to leave the room or even to turn his gaze to the side. His eyes wanted to commit every little detail of her to memory. But this was wrong. He shouldn't be staring at her like she was some piece of meat. It was already wrong that he had this crush on her and now he was looking at her almost salivating at the sight of some uncovered skin.

Gajeel mustered as much strength as possible (even using Iron Shadow Mode wasn't this hard!) and he blinked rapidly, trying to regain as much composure as possible. He swallowed hard and his hand quickly sought for the door knob to make a hasty exit.

"Ah shit! I jus-" He suddenly stopped, words dying in his mouth once again but for a whole different reason. There, on Levy's right shoulder blade, Gajeel's eyes fixed on a 6-inches long cut that reached to the middle of her back. Had he not had his dragon eyesight he would have missed it, for the cut was so sharp and thin that it almost look like a paper cut. But he could clearly see the redness around the wound and the tell-tale marks of dry blood that had been wiped out from her skin recently.

She was still hunched over, the skin on her back stretching, opening the wound slightly for him to notice that it wasn't as superficial as it might seem at first glance. All his embarrassment and awkwardness were quickly and utterly replaced by worry. He blinked and he suddenly was standing behind her, looking more intently into her injury.

Levy was still adamantly looking the other way, wishing to every God that she could disappear in that moment. She never noticed that Gajeel never left the room nor that he had walked closer to her. A surprised gasp escaped her lips when calloused yet gentle fingers traced along the edges of her cut. It was a featherlight touch, so different from the man doing so, yet she felt his touch leaving a scorching trail over her skin, though, she mused, it had nothing to do with the injury itself.

She looked over her shoulder and confirmed that Gajeel was right behind her, carefully inspecting her wound. Levy's blush multiplied by a thousand at seeing him so close now; she could almost feel his warm breath on her back.

"W-what a-are-?!"

"What happened?" His firm voice cut her off. Her blush receded a bit as Levy noticed then that his hard expression was somehow softer now, concern making him look younger than he was. Her heart skipped a beat at the intensity on his red eyes fixed on her shoulder blade. Behind the sea of crimson, she could clearly see the dancing emotions that he was probably unaware of and that she wasn't brave enough to ask about.

Levy sighed and dropped her eyes to the side, deciding on not to keep prying into the dragonslayer's heart. He was still expecting an answer to his question and she licked her lips before giving it to him. "An ambush. Just as we were entering Magnolia." She looked back at him, his brow creasing and the swirl of feelings in his eyes intensifying. "Wasn't a big deal. Just some idiots looking for trouble. Don't worry about it, Gajeel." She smiled sweetly, trying to ease his worry with one of her most efficient and most deceiving charms.

And Gajeel saw right through it.

Though her smile usually made him weak at the knees and had his heart speeding up a mile a minute, this time Gajeel held strong against it. She was trying to push him away, trying to convince him that it wasn't a big deal even when he was directly looking at the wound. What did she expect from him? To walk away and act as if he hadn't seen the cut on her back? He scoffed and glared at her for even considering pulling that off, causing her smile to falter.

Even when her injury wasn't as bad as the record of injuries he had seen in the rest of their guildmates, his scars being evidence of the type of wounds every Fairy Tail wizard got once in a while, it still needed to be cleaned and disinfected, maybe even put on some stitches if the cut proved to be too deep. Gajeel then noticed the damp cloth on her hand with a strong smell of antiseptic.

"Give me that." He motioned for the cloth as he grabbed some gauze from the nearby table and climbed the bed to sit cross-legged behind her. He surprised her and Levy looked for any other way to end this embarrassing charade.

"Gajeel, it's fine. Really." She reassured him. Her blush rekindled once again at feeling his warmth now so much closer to her exposed back. Levy just wanted to be left alone, her injury wasn't as bad as it seemed and she was completely able to clean it by herself! Though her short arms proved to be a slight challenge to this.

 _Please, just leave._

"I ain't asking, Levy." His strong tone and the use of her name had any other protest die on her tongue. Even through all of her embarrassment and her hurt pride she was still hoping for him to stay, for her heart always fluttered to have him there with her even in her weakest moments. She handed him the cloth and averted her gaze to the front, a small smile spreading on her lips at the sweet gesture of Gajeel tending to her wound.

As gently as he could, Gajeel cleaned her injury. He was attentive to every small whimper or hiss that escaped Levy's lips, knowing far too well that she wasn't going to complain about the pain. She was as stubborn as him after all. Thankfully, the cut wasn't too deep, so she wouldn't need stitches, but it had been a breath width away from cutting into muscle tissue and causing serious damage.

What surprised Gajeel the most was his own internal turmoil at looking at her cut. He had seen her in worst conditions. Heck, he had given her worst injuries than this one. But somehow, now that he had grown closer and closer to Levy, this slash was an unnerving reminder of how fragile she was. For even with all her strength and wisdom, she still bled and could break like any other person. Just the thought that something so bright and beautiful could be ripped away from his grasp by the world's cruelty made Gajeel's heart beat faster in fear.

He saw his hands shaking slightly and had to remind himself to breathe evenly to calm his racing mind. She was here and she was fine, so why was he making such a fuss about all of this?!

 _Stop freaking out, dammit._

Trying to keep himself grounded to the present, he asked Levy about her mission. Oblivious to his internal struggle, she gladly complied as she told him every detail that she deemed important about their quest for an ancient artifact. Her voice brightened when she talked about the old runes she broke, and she fistpumped the air after mentioning how she knocked down three enemies with a single spell.

Gajeel chuckled at her cheerfulness. She was so cute when she talked about her missions.

However, one question kept nagging at the back of his mind during her story. Because for him, it still made no sense at all that she had been here in the infirmary tending to her wound while her two cheerleaders were bragging happily at the bar.

Not realizing he voiced out his thoughts, Gajeel stopped for a second at feeling her going stiff. Levy was suddenly very quiet, fidgeting nervously with the sheets on the bed, looking intently at her feet and nibbling her lower lip anxiously. He realized then that neither Jet nor Droy knew about her being injured during the ambush.

"Why?" He tried to catch her gaze with his own but she kept diverting her eyes to the other side.

"I… I don't know…" She shrugged, her voice growing smaller, uncertain. "I just-" She huffed and shook her head, blue locks dancing with the movement.

 _I don't want them to think I'm weak_.

Levy felt tears come to her eyes but forced them away. Her reasoning was stupid and she knew it, so why was she getting all worked up by thinking about it?

Words had always been her thing, but by spending so much time with her Gajeel had learned to read her mood as perfectly as she could read any ancient rune. He clicked his tongue in disapproval. That's all he allowed himself to do before resuming putting on the gauze over her cut. His heart ached to wrap her in his arms, to comfort her and tell her how amazing she was and how stupid it was to think the way she did.

"Tch. They worry cuz they care, Shrimp. You taught me that." She looked back at him with wide eyes and parted lips. Shock was written all over her face and Gajeel couldn't contain the smirk that tilted his lips sideways.

To think that Gajeel of all would be throwing her words back at her! Levy couldn't hold down the sincere smile spreading on her lips. "You're right." She huffed easily, feeling a weight lift off her chest.

"'f course I'm right." He stated proudly, setting up the last gauze over her injury. "All done." He climbed off the bed and put away the cloth and clean gauzes. Levy quickly followed suit, pulling her shirt over her head to finally quell down the mortification of being half-naked in front of Gajeel. She turned to him with the smile still present on her lips.

"Thank you, Gajeel. For everything." The happiness seeping through her voice warmed Gajeel's chest that he couldn't stop himself from returning the smile back at her.

"Anytime, Shorty." He ruffled her hair but she didn't complain this time. She went for the door and Gajeel chuckled at how she was practically skipping happily on her trek. He stood rooted for a moment, trying to control the blush that was threatening to creep up his neck at her adorableness.

"Oh! And Gajeel…" She looked back at him, her hand on the door knob as he returned her gaze with an inquisitive one. "About what you said…" She averted her eyes for a second, then met his eyes again, a cute pink blush dusting her cheeks. "I guess you care about me too then." She winked, sauntering out of the room the next instant, no doubt full of embarrassment about what she just said.

Gajeel's heart took a leap to his throat and his chest filled with so much warmth at seeing her so cheerful. He was sure he could go blind with how radiant she was. And leave it to Levy to get back at him for using her words against her.

 _Care?_

He was well passed that point and he knew it. She was his air and light and everything that gave him hope in this world to become a better man. His hand went to his chest in an attempt to control the wild beating of his heart.

 _Care? Pft._

"Ya have no idea." He smiled and followed her to the guildhall.

* * *

 **A/N:** Hope you liked it! It was incredibly comforting to write this one! It's been a while since I've had such inspiration hit me like it did with this one so I really really hope you enjoy it!

Don't forget to comment if you like it :D


	7. First Steps

For capaleran2 who sent me "Yahoo Me" from a prompt list (Leave an " **Yahoo Me** " in my ask, and I'll write a drabble about the specified characters celebrating something [ _feel free to specify_.] )

 **Title:** First Steps

 **Pairing** : Gajevy with the twins

 **Word count** : 1.2k

 **Summary:** celebrating the twins' first steps.

 **A/N:** Let's throw in some fluff

* * *

"Gajeel! Come here quickly!" Levy's shrill voice woke up the dragon slayer with a start. He fell from the bed with a thump, banging his head on the night table when he tried to stand up too quickly. With a curse on his lips, he ran out of the bedroom and down the stairs of his home taking two at a time. He had just been dozing off for a quick afternoon nap for Mavis sake! What the fuck had happened in just 5 minutes?!

He skidded to a stop at the threshold of the living room, his dragon hearing telling him this was where his wife's voice came from. "What's wrong?" Gajeel half barked half growled. His instincts were on high alert scanning the room for anything that had caused Levy's voice to hold such urgency.

His eyes registered the room and it was as he had left it just minutes ago. Levy was kneeled down on the carpet floor and the twins were just a couple steps from her with their baby toys around them laying askew. Gajeel followed Levy's gaze when she didn't answer and his body relaxed in a second when his eyes landed on Shutora.

His 9-months-old baby girl who was standing up on her own for the first time in her life.

Words failed him as he couldn't tear his eyes from his daughter. Her lower lip poked out and her eyes looked down at her wobbly legs as if trying to command her limbs to follow her orders. Her small hands rested on the couch for support as she still tried to find her own balance. Gajeel swore he saw in Shutora the same concentration Levy held whenever she decoded an ancient language.

Levy cast a side glance to him, not wanting to miss anything her daughter might do. She giggled at seeing Gajeel standing frozen by the threshold, his eyes wide in amazement and his mouth opening and closing like a gaping fish. But who could blame him? Levy felt the same excitement and elation cursing through her veins and rippling goosebumps on her flesh from her bursting emotions.

"Come!" Levy urged Gajeel, snapping him back to action as he moved to sit down next to his wife. He placed his arm around her shoulders, trying to remind himself he wasn't dreaming and he really was about to witness the first steps of their daughter.

Shutora let go of the edge of the couch, her legs shook from the effort and she lost her balance for a second. Gajeel's protective instinct soared as he almost launched himself to catch her, but her quick hands placed themselves back on the couch preventing her from falling to the floor. Gajeel let out a breath he didn't notice he was holding in and Levy laughed, trying to hide the fact that she had felt the same instinct take over her.

Gajeel frowned at his wife, pinching her cheek for laughing at his expense. She swatted away his hand, their eyes again focused completely on their daughter. Suddenly, Gajeel remembered something very important.

"Lily! Get the lacrima!" he shouted over his shoulder, hoping with all his might that his friend could hurry so they wouldn't miss recording Shutora's first step on the video lacrima. Gajeel and Levy adored watching all the videos of the twins doing anything and he knew Shu's first step would become one of their favorite ones.

Levy gasped and Gajeel quickly followed her gaze to find not one but two babies now on their feet. Yajeh was standing next to his sister with his chubby hands on the coffee table. He stomped his right foot on the carpet floor getting used to the movement of his limb while gurgling happily.

Levy almost laughed. Of course, Yajeh couldn't let his sister alone in this! They were always together and with the months gone by both parents had seen the bond grow stronger and stronger between the twins. They were partners in crime and it would be a cold day in hell before Yajeh would let Shutora take on an adventure all by herself.

"Oh Mavis," Gajeel breathed out shakily. He couldn't contain the tears that prickled at the corner of his eyes. Pride swelled up in his chest and a storm of emotions washed over him at looking at their kids. When did they grow up so much? He remembered as if it was yesterday that they came home from the hospital with two bundles of joy tightly tucked in their arms. And now, those same shrimplings were about to take their first steps towards an endless adventure.

Levy placed her hand over Gajeel's and squeezed it reassuringly. Her happy tears were already leaving a trail over her cheeks and the proud smile he wore only helped the tears fall faster.

The twins seemed to have gathered the hang on how to remain on their feet, as Shutora wiggled her hip from side to side and Yajeh bent his knees excitedly as if trying to jump.

Levy extended her hands forward beckoning the kids to join their parents. "Come babies. You can do it," she cooed in a sweet tone grabbing the attention of both children. The kids' faces lighted up at their mother's voice and they babbled excitedly in a high pitch.

"Come on, ya know we'll catch you," Gajeel's soothing voice joined them and the babies' happiness seemed to skyrocket at their father's loving gaze.

The twins needed no more encouragement. With a shrill laugh and wide smiles both kids let go of their hands perch and took three quick wobbly steps towards their parents. Their delighted squeals and excited blabbering rang loud on each corner of their home. When they lost their footing, their parents were there to catch them as they promised.

"That was fantastic Shu!" Levy held Shutora closely, hugging her tightly and kissing her cheeks lovingly. Shutora squealed happily in her mother's arms, her hands now finding perch on her mother's dress to hug her back.

"Gihi, I knew you could do it!" Gajeel hugged Yajeh close to him as he nuzzled his son's wild blue hair. Yajeh squirmed in his father's hold and kicked his little feet up in the air excitedly, no doubt feeling all his father's emotions washing in waves through him.

Gajeel drew Levy and Shutora into a big warm family embrace. He didn't even fight the happy tears that spilled down his face and with his thumb he lovingly wiped away Levy's tears. She smiled brightly at him and kissed both babies on their foreheads, feeling an unparalleled peace and happiness fill her heart to the brim of bursting.

"You do realize now they're gonna be even more troublesome?" Lily chuckled from the other side of the room with the recording lacrima on his hands. His own eyes shone brightly from unshed happy tears. "I mean, we could barely keep up with them and they were just crawling." He smirked tenderly, laughing inwardly at thinking on how many more shenanigans the twins were going to pull off now that they had learned to walk.

Gajeel and Levy blinked comically at him and looked down at the squirming kids in their arms. The twins seemed to be bursting out with energy as they squealed happily while kicking their feet high in the air, wanting nothing more than to keep exploring the world with each new step they would take.

The mages laughed wholeheartedly as the truth behind Lily's words sank into them. Indeed, the twins were about to become even more of a handful than they already were.

But what else could they have expected from their kids?

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you very much for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! Don't forget to comment if you liked this fic :)

 **WTF (Where's The Food?)**


	8. And you are?

**A/N:** Hey everyone! this was a request made a long time ago by BianWW and seemed very fitting for this year's gajevy day ❤ hope you enjoy it! haha sorry Bian for taking forever to do it! And again huge shout out to rannuculus fox for beta reading this! thank you darling!

 **Modern AU**

 **Request** : Gajevy blind date

 **Word count:** 3.7k

* * *

Gajeel hated his current situation. More so, he hated Natsu the most. It wasn't enough that his pink haired cousin decided to finally propose to his girlfriend, but Natsu had gone full groomzilla mode, much to everyone's surprise and dismay, bugging all his cousins to have someone decent as their partners for the wedding.

And of course, the only one fucked by that demand was Gajeel.

Sting and Rogue had their respective partners for a long time now. Everyone was surprised that Natsu jumped the boat first than them but no one was really pressuring the two brothers as they were the younger from the cousins after Wendy. Laxus dared to make a joke that he was going to take one or two of his one night stands to the wedding for fun. Natsu about chewed his head off until he promised he would take Mira, his oldest friend. Then there was Wendy but she could have avoided the bullet as she's the favorite out of all the cousins. Nonetheless, she pleased Natsu by telling him she would take Romeo to the wedding. The poor boy swore on his life that he had no ill intentions with Wendy and that he would be the best gentleman he could be after all the cousins rounded on him one afternoon after classes. And finally, Cobra had surprised everyone when he revealed he had been dating this nice girl for about 3 years already and that he would take her to the wedding.

So, all the cousins were set with their partners but Gajeel. He tried to escape Natsu's wrath by saying Lily would go with him but the groom-to-be had already gotten the confirmation from Lily that he would go to the wedding with a plus one.

 _Fucking traitor._

So, to ease Natsu, because he was honestly driving everyone crazy at the home and at work, Gajeel agreed to the stupidest shit he had ever done in his life.

A blind date.

The fuckard didn't even show him a picture of the girl he was supposed to meet in 10 min at the coffee shop. He said something about Gajeel being too eager to judge people based on their looks. _Da fuck._ He didn't judge others, Gajeel was just really good at reading people. It was a gift when it came to dealing with stupid customers at the mechanic shop, but truthfully, it had made Gajeel more wary when dating someone.

 _Too prude._

 _Too crazy._

 _She'll call the cops once she sees me._

Gajeel knew he was just using any excuse to avoid dating, but who could blame him. It was just so boresome to pretend you're interested in someone you just met, and the stupid relationship drama seem greatly unappealing to him.

But now, there was no escape for him. Natsu had set this date up and the girl would be waiting for him at the coffee shop. And even when Gajeel was an asshole, he wasn't the type to stand up a girl on a date.

No, he had manners. He would order his coffee to go and approach the girl at the table. If she even asked about his cup, he would brush it off saying that the barista fucked up his order. He would then give the date 10 min or so, so it wouldn't be too obvious when his alarm would go off and he will pick his phone up pretending that it was an important call from work. If she made a scene it would be more than obvious that the girl was not for him. Who the fuck would make a scene after someone tells you they have an emergency at work, right? Either way, Gajeel would go out the door to never see the girl again.

He would still need a plan to ease Natsu's wrath, but he was dealing with one step at a time.

Gajeel entered the coffee shop and went straight to the counter to order his black coffee to go. As he waited, he tried to remember the little details Natsu had revealed about the girl he was supposed to meet.

"Her hair is a unique color."

"She's short."

"I think she likes books."

Natsu wasn't the most brilliant person when describing other people. Mavis bless the woman that had agreed to marry his idiot cousin. Besides, he did mention that this girl was a friend of a friend, so he might had gotten some of the details wrong or forgotten other ones.

Gajeel sighed. He just hoped there were not a lot of girls sitting by themselves, so he wouldn't made a fool of himself multiple times. Or get kicked out of the coffee shop by the police for acting like a creep. Not like it hadn't happened before.

Gajeel looked around the coffee shop and spotted a group of friends sitting at a table to his right, some other customers were seated at the counter next to the window. He saw a girl with hair a less ridiculous shade of pink than Natsu's and scoffed thinking that it might be getting popular to dye your hair pink. She was by herself but didn't really looked like she was short or that she was waiting on anyone, so he decided to let her be. He kept surveying around until his eyes landed on the far-left corner of the shop.

By the window, a girl sat curled in one of the love seats, enjoying the sun rays that filtered through the crystal framing her heart shaped face and kissed her pearly skin. On the coffee table in front of her lay a pile of books and a grey mug with pink lipstick on the rim of the cup that matched the one on her plump lips. Her hazel eyes trailed over the words on the book she held close to her and Gajeel swore he saw an infinite number of emotions dance behind those beautiful orbs. She flipped to the next page and fixed one sky-blue strand of her curly hair that had escaped her yellow bandanna behind her ear. She bit her bottom lip and a tiny smile tilted the corner of her mouth. She was gorgeous and Gajeel forgot how to breathe or think. His mind was completely consumed by the blue haired woman and he wondered if maybe he was so fucking lucky that she might be his date.

Something stirred in his gut. Gajeel started feeling embarrassed and so fucking nervous. This is why he never liked dating, because he would more often than not be stupidly rude to the girl or make a fool of himself. He swallowed hard and played with the coins in his pocket.

As she bit her lip again, Gajeel groaned inwardly. He wondered how those lips would taste, he wondered how beautifully she would moan as he would lavish those plump lips of her as his hands would roam over her curves-

"Here's your order sir. Black coffee to go." Gajeel was startled out of his daydream by the barista who not so subtly snickered at the obvious blush on the man's face.

"Thanks," Gajeel grumbled quietly and his gaze returned to the blue haired woman. She matched all the vague descriptions that Natsu had given him and for Mavis Gajeel really wished that she was the girl set up in a date with him. She was by herself too and the empty love seat across the coffee table from her was the only indication that she might be waiting on someone.

Gajeel found himself moving to stand next to her before he even had anything in mind to say to introduce himself without looking like a creep. Nonetheless, she didn't seem to notice him as she continued with her book. Gajeel shifted on his feet and cleared his throat loudly to catch her attention. She blinked rapidly like a spell had been lifted from her and then she noticed for the first time the tall broad man that stood next to her.

Her eyes widened as she tilted her head as far back as she could to see the man's face. _How freaking tall is this guy?!_

Gajeel sure expected the woman to freak out or at least get startled once her eyes reached his face. With his red eyes, his unruly black hair that he had _tried_ to tame for today's date and all the piercings that adorned his face, he was sure fear would cross through those hazel eyes that hid no emotion to the spectator. He braced himself for the high-pitched shrill that would surely escape from her, but when her eyes met his she remained silent, her mouth forming a small "o" that lacked all the fear he was expecting and displayed all the surprise of a small kid that had discovered something new and intriguing. There was no fear in her eyes either. She seemed surprisingly... curious.

That was definitely a first for Gajeel as he tried to hold his gaze on hers, feeling like he wanted to shrink on himself at her curious scrutiny. Her hazel eyes seemed to bore into his soul and Gajeel had never felt so bare to anyone else in his life than to this woman. She was intriguing to say the least and all this silence was driving Gajeel mad. So, he blurted the first words that crossed his mind.

"Quit with the staring, Shortstuff." Ah, it seemed that today was the stupidly rude attitude on Gajeel's part and he wanted to slap himself as the woman almost flinched from his gruff voice. But then…

"I'm not that short you know!" She stood up and he realized that she was indeed quite short. But he found her to be more adorable then. She got into Gajeel's space and he took a step back from the intimidating woman that blazed like sunfire. Her blue curls bounced when she lifted her chin high up and poked him in the chest. "You just happen to be stupidly tall!"

Her eyes shone with a raging fire he had never encountered before and Gajeel wanted nothing more than to kiss her in that moment. She was definitely feisty and didn't care at all about Gajeel's intimidating looks as she stood her ground, crossing her arms over her chest to make herself bigger. And Mavis, she had become the biggest thing in Gajeel's mind in that moment.

So, her height was a sensitive topic for her, eh? Gajeel stood up straighter then, puffing out his chest and he adored how a blush that had nothing to do with her anger dusted her cheeks. But as she "hmpf" and lifted her chin higher as if grasping at every single inch of height she could Gajeel couldn't help but laugh. Loudly.

"Gihihihi!" He clutched his sides as he bent over from laughter. His coffee had been abandoned at the coffee table as a precaution to not spill it all over himself as he roared with his laughter and his body shook in amusement. The other customers turned to look at the scene of a pouting blue-haired woman and a tough guy laughing like a maniac. Some curious glances lingered longer on them, but the couple didn't seem to care at all.

Gajeel took a deep breath, trying to reign control on his mirth. Geez, how long had it been since he had laughed this way? The girl tried to grasp at her anger a little bit more, but the weird laugh of this guy was oddly contagious that she couldn't help the small smile that betrayed her fury.

Gajeel wiped away the tears at the corner of his eye and chuckled one last time before his gaze returned to the girl. She huffed, pretending to be annoyed again but having some trouble to keep mad at this stranger.

"You're mean, you know?" The mirth that hid at the corner of her eyes told him it was not an insult thrown his way.

"Heh, I've been called worse." He shrugged, and a tiny almost invisible smile tilted his lips. She caught it before it was gone and spiked her intrigue even more. "Is this seat taken?" Gajeel pointed to the empty love seat across her and swallowed hard, hoping she wouldn't notice the eager note in his voice.

"Uhm, actually." She bit her lip and her brows creased in apology, "I'm waiting on someone, sorry."

"Ah." Gajeel hid his hurt by sipping on his coffee. Somehow, the bitter taste of the beverage tasted sweet compared to the feeling that settled heavy on his tongue. "That's alright. I'm actually looking for someone. Stupid as it is, I'm here on a blind date."

Gajeel was never one to talk much, and less to people he had just met, but the words almost blurted out of his mouth before his mind could registered it happening. Her eyes widened in response and she chuckled as her gaze softened on him. "A blind date, eh? Me too. I-I'm waiting on the guy now."

"Ah." Hope bloomed in his rib cage leaving him lightheaded. For once Natsu had done something right in his goddamn life. "My idiot cousin wouldn't show me a pic of the girl, but you fit the description he gave me. Short, unique hair and book lover." He looked over the table and just noticed the additional pile of books that were underneath it. _Holy shit, this girl really likes to read!_

Her gaze hardened, and she was about to chew him off for mocking her height again when recognition flashed over her eyes. "Wait." She drew back and looked him over once again, the gears in her mind connecting the dots. "My friend didn't show me a photo of the guy either." A soft smile settled on her lips and she visibly relaxed. "I'm guessing you're the tall, vibrant-eyes, peculiar-face guy then?"

"Peculiar face?" He quirked a pierced eyebrow. _The fuck was that kinda description?_

"Well, not everyone has their face heavily pierced like you." Gajeel felt self-conscious then. Did she not like his piercings? "But," she continued, "I think they suit you just fine." And then she smiled at him and Gajeel swore to kiss Natsu's feet for arranging this date with the most gorgeous woman in this whole damn universe.

He let go of a breath he didn't notice he was holding and pointed to the empty seat again. "So?" She giggled and nodded her head for him to take the seat. Gajeel had never heard a laugh so beautiful and sweet and something deep within him wanted to hear that laugh for the rest of his life.

"I'm Levy, by the way."

 _Levy._ The name tasted sweet as he repeated it in his mind.

"Ah. Gajeel." He smirked.

She extended her hand and he wrapped his around hers, marveling at the size difference. Her skin was so soft in his calloused touch. She was so delicate and beautiful that he had the strongest urge to protect her, to wrap her in his arms and horde her away from the world so no one could harm her. And yet, she was a force to be reckoned, a little spitfire with a quick tongue and blazing eyes. She was an enigma to him and Gajeel wanted to spend his life figuring her out.

As he took his seat he wondered if there had been any other moment in his life where he had felt such peace. It was so strange. Less than 30 minutes ago he had been dreading this date and now he felt like his life had suddenly shifted. It was stupid to think that after talking with this tiny woman for 10 minutes his life had brightened, but there was no other way Gajeel could wrap his head around this odd but pleasing feeling. He wanted to know her more, to make her happy.

"So Gajeel, you-" A shrill interrupted her question. Gajeel cursed under his breath for forgetting his phone alarm that was going to get him out of this date. He wanted nothing more that stay as long as he could. He quickly took out his phone and dismissed the alarm.

"Sorry, I-"

"Work emergency?" she questioned and something sad pulled at the corner of her eyes.

"What? No! No," he corrected quickly, panicking over upsetting Levy. "I just fucked up with my alarms that's all."

Her eyes narrowed in disbelief but settled back into her seat as she shrugged. "It was a solid plan though."

"Uh?"

"Well, the coffee to go and then the alarm? You were planning on ditching the date, right?" His red eyes widened in shock. _Is this girl psychic?!_

She giggled at his shocked expression and continued, "I'm not sure why, but you don't come off like the type of guy who dates a lot." She gave him a sheepish smile. "I usually do something similar but use the family emergency card instead." She giggled again.

"Heh? Is that so?" He smiled softly at her and enjoyed how she blushed at the gesture. "So shortstuff, is there going to be a family emergency today?"

Her gaze darkened at the nickname and he enjoyed how easily it was to push her buttons. Then she smiled and tucked her legs under her. "I don't think so. And you?" There was a hopeful note in her voice and tension settled subtly on her shoulders as the question hung between them.

"Not a chance." He smirked, and his red eyes shone with emotions he was trying to figure out. The smile she gave him in return was dazzling and Gajeel looked aside to cover the blush that spread over his face. "Uhm, I'm gonna grab a muffin or something cuz I'm starving. Want something?"

"A black coffee would be nice, thank you."

He grunted in response as he stood up to order his food and her coffee. As he waited in line he sneaked a glance at Levy. She was in the same position as he saw her before introducing himself. The light framed her breathtaking features as her hazel gaze got lost in the pages of her book. Gajeel felt his insides flutter in an indescribable way that had him almost clenching his hand over his heart at the rapid beating in his chest. She made him feel so much and he felt a tad bit uncomfortable with such strange reactions he was getting from his body, but he welcomed all these feelings, because something about her made him feel whole, made him feel at peace and Mavis he had never felt this way with anyone before.

As Levy felt Gajeel's gaze on her, her eyes sought for him at the line by the counter. When she met his red irises, she smiled sweetly. He returned it with his own gentle smile. When he turned back to pay for their order, Levy took out her phone and quickly sent a text to Mira.

 _Thank you so much for this. He's great! ❤ talk to you later!_

She put away her phone and missed Mira's reply.

 _! You got this Levy! Tell me all the juicy details later~_

* * *

Bickslow hurriedly entered the coffee shop. He was beyond fucked! He was incredibly late to the stupid blind date Mira had set for him. He just hoped that Mira's friend was still there and that she wouldn't be pissed at him for being so late.

He checked his phone and started looking around for the blue haired girl that was supposed to be his date. Laughter caught his attention and he saw the girl he was looking for at the far left of the coffee shop. There he found the Mira's friend, but she seemed to be having a really good time with the black haired man sitting in front of her. His date seemed to have gotten herself her own date and she was enjoying it to the fullest.

Bickslow smiled. He was fine with that but just worried about Mira's rage for ruining her matchmaking plan. Well, she wouldn't be so mad if he got her some new gossip, right?

He took out his cellphone and took a quick picture of the couple. He looked at it and he had to admit that they looked really cute and happy together. The girl was smiling a mile a minute and the guy had that soft look you only get to see a handful of time.

Bickslow wrote a text to Mira and sent the picture with it.

 _I just arrived at the coffee shop but seems that your baby blue already got herself her_ _man_ _._

He put away his phone and ordered a sandwich. As he looked for a place to sit, he spotted a girl with pink hair over the counter by the window and luckily for him the seat next to her was empty. He tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention and she took off her headphones and turned her gaze to the man.

"Hey darling, is this seat taken?"

She turned her eyes to the black-haired man that roared in laughter at something the blue-haired girl just said. Her eyes softened and looked back at Bickslow, shaking her head no. "Not anymore, go ahead." She smiled sweetly and Bickslow returned the gesture with a grin.

"Heh, just my luck that my date got herself someone else." He laughed starting a random conversation with the pink-haired girl who giggled in return.

"Same happened to me actually." She turned to look at the couple at the far left before giggling again.

"Really? You and that guy?" He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"Blind date set up by some friends. But they warned me he didn't know what I looked like."

"Heh! Lots of coincidence then. Baby blue over there was supposed to be my blind date too." He laughed. This girl was very easy to get along with and she had such a nice vibe to her that Bickslow wondered if they had indeed been very lucky to mix up the set-up dates.

"I'm Meredy." She extended her hand and he gladly took it.

"Bickslow." He said between bites of his sandwich.

* * *

 **A/N:** Thank you everyone for reading! Please let me know your thoughts on this ❤ it was really fun and cute to write it :D I still got some WIPs from fallfest and the last chapter for Posibilidad but now I'm done with uni for the meantime so I can focus a bit more on writing :D


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